Taco Bell Accused of Not ‘Meat’ing Standards

The fast food chain, Taco Bell, has been accused of false advertising when it refers to “seasoned beef” in its meaty Mexican fare.

The Alabaman law firm Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles filed a lawsuit on Friday on behalf of Amanda Obney, a Californian customer of Taco Bell. Ms Obney doesn’t want cash damages but demands that Taco Bell be more honest in its advertising practices.

In a study conducted by the law firm, it was found that Taco Bell’s “meat mixture”, which it dubs “seasoned beef” contained less than 35 % beef. If these figures are correct, the product would fail to meet minimum requirements, set by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, to be labeled as “beef”. The other 65% of the “meat” is made up of water, soy lecithin, maltodextrin, silicon dioxide, anti-dusting agent and modified corn starch (amongst other ingredients more suited to a test tube than a taco).

Although Taco Bell displays these added ingredients on its website, there is no mention of just how much actual meat is contained in the product.

Rob Poetsch, a spokesman for Taco Bell, said the company denies that its advertising is misleading: “Taco Bell prides itself on serving high quality Mexican inspired food with great value. We’re happy that the millions of customers we serve every week agree.”

The verdict of the case — or the ruling from the court of public opinion — has yet to be announced.